Mission FPC
“Pleasing God” is a subject found throughout the Bible but that resonates so little in our daily life. Who among us asks themselves this question: how can I please God? The reason is simple, most of our friends and neighbors don’t know him personally. But let’s be honest, there’s a lot more to say about “doing something pleasing for yourself”! Talking a walk in nature, having a hot drink, eating chocolate, taking out your musical instrument …
Then there’s “pleasing others”, your spouse, your parents, your teacher, your boss at work, others in your church. This desire follows us from childhood and approval from those close to us fills us with joy and energizes us. Someone who was not given approval as a child will always be looking for compliments or comforting words. Personally (J.-A.) I had parents who excelled in every field: professionally, in general knowledge, music, logic. I never felt that I could measure up because I simply wasn’t good enough. When your parents are brilliant and you are not, how do you keep from being discouraged? Pleasing others therefore can become a black hole.
What about you? What motivates you to get up every morning? Is it your sense of responsibility? Is it your desire to realize your plans to travel, buy a house, celebrate Christmas, decorate the house, or tighten your budget in order to finish the month well?
And where is God in all this? How did our Lord experience these questions on earth? What did his heavenly Father say to him at his baptism? “You are my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased [1]”. How strongly those words resonate in our hearts! Isn’t that what we all long for? That is what we were made and saved for: being the object of his affection and approval, as Jesus was, our master and our brother[2].
Why does the Father feel such affection for his Son? We don’t claim to be able to understand the mystery of the Trinity. Divine love is far beyond us. But it certainly has something to do with the fact that Jesus sought to please and obey his heavenly Father at all times, as we wish to do too: “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me[3].” This thought was with him every morning when he woke up. It dictated absolutely all of his choices, up to his final breath on the cross.
To do the will of our heavenly Father is to please him. My husband coaches our two sons in soccer. He rejoices every time his boys follow his advice, obey him. Father and sons see the progress together and rejoice together.
Pleasing God, our creator, is also closely linked to our existence. It is part of our fundamental need as human beings created in his image. If we seek happiness, we must seek God, and more precisely seek to make him happy[4]. We belong to him, he knows us, he also knows every member of our community, every FPC missionary.
What would happen if pleasing God was not our first vocation? If it was, for example, submission? What would change? We would undoubtedly no longer have this type of intimate relationship with God. It would be a cold world with a harsh and distant God, with rules to follow, nothing more. We have the privilege of a close, loving relationship with our heavenly Father: “Abba” [5]. We seek to please him, because he loves us, and we love him in return[6]!
What so often prevents us, in our personal lives, in the Church and in Mission FPC, from pleasing God and living out this primary calling? Perhaps we don’t give God the place he deserves in our hearts. Our selfishness, our fears, our worries[7], temptations, our false convictions … prevent us from doing so.
We, like you, are journeying with the Lord, and we hope that this desire to please him grows in our heart, but also in yours, in our Churches and our missionary work.
[1] Luke 3.22.
[2] After John 15.9; 17.23, 26.
[3] John 6.38.
[4] Psalm 37.4; Romans 12.2; 2 Corinthians 5.9.
[5] According to Romans 8.15; Galatians 4.6.
[6] Matthew 22.37; 1 John 4.19.
[7] Matthew 6.33-34.
Mission FPC
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